List of fiction set in Chicago

This is a list of fiction set in Chicago

This list is incomplete; you can help by expanding it.

Novels

• Nelson Algren's The Man With the Golden Arm ISBN 1-58322-008-9
• Blue Balliett's Chasing Vermeer and The Wright 3
• Saul Bellow's The Adventures of Augie March ISBN 0-14-018941-6
• Saul Bellow's Dangling Man
• Saul Bellow's Ravelstein
• Richard Bissell's 7½ Cents uses Chicago as a foil for a fictitious Iowa city.
• Charles Blackstone's The Week You Weren't Here
• Fredric Brown's The Fabulous Clipjoint
• Jim Butcher's The Dresden Files Series
• Robert Wright Campbell's Jimmy Flannery mystery series
• Paul Carson's Final Duty ISBN 0-09-941519-4
• Sean Chercover's Big City, Bad Blood P.I. mystery.
• Sandra Cisneros' The House on Mango Street ISBN 0-679-43335-X
• Doug M. Cummings's Deader by the Lake: A Reno McCarthy Thriller ISBN 059529359X
• Doug M. Cummings's Every Secret Crime: A Reno McCarthy Novel 2008. Five Star.
• Don DeGrazia's American Skin
• Julie Dever's Say Goodnight, Gracie
• Tom Dowd's Burning Bright ISBN 0-451-45368-9
• Theodore Dreiser's Sister Carrie ISBN 0-451-52760-7
• Stuart Dybek's The Coast of Chicago ISBN 0-312-42425-6
• James T. Farrell's Studs Lonigan trilogy
• Joshua Ferris's Then We Came to the End ISBN 978-0316016384
• Edna Ferber's So Big
• John M. Ford's The Last Hot Time ISBN 0-312-87578-9
• Melvin E. Giles's George Street, Our Street ISBN 0-9656364-0-2
• John Grisham's The Litigators
• Michael T. Harvey's The Chicago Way and The Fifth Floor
• Aleksandar Hemon's Nowhere Man ISBN 0-375-72702-7
• Ward Just's An Unfinished Season
• Harry Stephen Keeler's The Riddle of the Traveling Skull ISBN 1932416269 (and many other novels by Keeler)
• Adam Langer's Crossing California and The Washington Story (the latter a semi-sequel to the former)
• Nella Larsen's Quicksand ISBN 0-14-118127-3
• Nella Larsen's Passing ISBN 0-14-243727-1
• Jeanette Lee's Mr. Achilles
• Somerset Maugham's The Razor's Edge ISBN 1-4000-3420-5
• Joe Meno's Hairstyles of the Damned
• Thomas Mullen The Many Deaths of the Firefly Brothers
• Audrey Niffenegger's The Time Traveler's Wife ISBN 0-15-602943-X
• Frank Norris's The Pit
• Achy Obejas's Memory Mambo
• Sara Paretsky's thrillers featuring private eye V.I. Warshawski
• Richard Peck's Fair Weather
• Daniel Pinkwater's The Education of Robert Nifkin
• Veronica Roth's "Divergent"
• Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson's Illuminatus!
• Upton Sinclair's The Jungle ISBN 1-884365-30-2
• Greg Leitich Smith's Ninjas, Piranhas and Galileo
• Terrance L. Smith's The Thief Who Came to Dinner
• Scott Spencer's Endless Love
• Chris Ware's Jimmy Corrigan, the smartest kid on earth (mostly set in Chicago)
• Richard Wright's Native Son ISBN 0-06-092980-4

Erik Larson's "The Devil in the White City"

Musicals and plays

• American Buffalo
• Be Like Water
• Bleacher Bums
• Chicago (musical)
• Chicago (play)
• The Front Page
• Glengarry Glen Ross
• In the Jungle of Cities
• Ma Rainey's Black Bottom
• Proof
• A Raisin in the Sun
• Sexual Perversity in Chicago
• Superior Donuts

Films

• About Last Night... (1986)
• Above the Law (1988)
• Adventures in Babysitting (1987)
• The Adventures of Lucky Pierre (1961)
• Ali (2001)
• Allah Tantou (1989)
• American Reel (1999)
• Angel Eyes (2001)
• Anything's Possible (1999)
• The Babe (1992)
• Baby's Day Out (1994)
• Backdraft (1991)
• Bad Boys (1983)
• Barbershop (2002)
• Barbershop 2: Back in Business (2004)
• Betrayed (1988)
• Big Shots (1987)
• Blankman (1994)
• Blind (1994)
• The Blues Brothers (1980)
• Blues Brothers 2000 (1998)
• Brannigan (1975)
• The Break-Up (2006)
• Breed of Men (1919)
• Bridesmaids (2011) (partly in Chicago)
• The Brute (1920)
• Bugsy Malone (1976)
• Call Northside 777 (1948)
• Candyman (1992) - based on a book originally set in London
• Casino (1995) - scenes labeled as "Back Home" are in Chicago
• Category 6: Day of Destruction (2004) (partly in Chicago)
• Chain Reaction (1996)
• Cheaper By The Dozen (2003)
• Chicago (1927)
• Chicago (2002)
• Child's Play (1988)
• Child's Play 2 (1990)
• Class (1983)
• Code of Silence (1985)
• The Company (2003)
• Continental Divide (1981)
• Cooley High (1975)
• Curly Sue (1991)
• Damien: Omen II (1978)
• Danger Lights (1930) (partly in Chicago)
• Death of a President (2006)
• The Dilemna (2011)
• Derailed (2005)
• Dick Tracy (1990)
• Dragonfly (2002)
• The Dumb Girl of Portici (1916)
• Eagle Eye (2008)
• Eight Men Out (1988)
• The Express (2009)
• Ferris Bueller's Day Off (1986)
• Flatliners (1990)
• The Fugitive (1993)
• The Fury (1978)
• Girls Just Want To Have Fun (1985)
• Go Fish (1994)
• Hardball (2001)
• Harry and Tonto (1974)
• Heaven is a Playground (1991)
• Henry: Portrait of a Serial Killer (1986) (partly in Chicago)
• Hero (1992)
• High Fidelity (2000) - based on a book originally set in London
• His New Job (1915)
• Home Alone (1990)
• Home Alone 2: Lost in New York (1992) (partly in Chicago)
• Home Alone 3 (1997)
• The Homesteader (1919)
• Hope Floats (1998) (partly in Chicago)
• Hoodlum (1997)
• The Hunter (1980) (partly in Chicago)
• The Great Ziegfeld (1936)
• I Love Trouble (1994)
• In the Depth of Our Hearts (1920)
• I, Robot (2004)
• It's the Rage (1999)
• I Want Someone to Eat Cheese With (2007)
• Judgment Night (1993)
• King of the Rodeo (1929)
• Kissing A Fool (1998)
• The Lake House (2006)
• A League of Their Own (1992)
• Light It Up (1999)
• Little Fockers (2010)
• Looking for Mr. Goodbar (1977)
• Love and Action in Chicago (1999)
• Love Jones (1997)
• Lucas (1986)
• Mean Girls (2004)
• Medium Cool (1969)
• Meet the Parents (2000) (partly set in Chicago)
• Mercury Rising (1998)
• Message in a Bottle (partly set in Chicago)
• Michael (1996) (partly in Chicago)
• Mickey One (1965)
• Midnight Run (1988) (partly in Chicago)
• Miracle on 34th Street (1994) (partly in Chicago)
• Mo' Money (1992)
• Monkey Hustle (1976)
• Music Box (1989)
• My Best Friend's Wedding (1997)
• My Big Fat Greek Wedding (2002)
• My Bodyguard (1980)
• National Lampoon's Vacation (1983) (partly in Chicago)
• National Lampoon's European Vacation (1985-starts in Chicago)
• National Lampoon's Christmas Vacation (1989)
• Natural Born Killers (1994) (partly in Chicago)
• The Negotiator (1998)
• Never Been Kissed (1999)
• Next of Kin (1989) (set in Chicago and Kentucky)
• A Night in the Life of Jimmy Reardon (1988)
• Nothing in Common (1986) (partly in Chicago)
• Only the Lonely (1991) -- with John Candy
• On the Line (2001)
• Opportunity Knocks (1990)
• Ordinary People(1980)
• The Package (1989)
• Poltergeist III (1988)
• Planes, Trains & Automobiles (1987)
• Prelude to a Kiss (1992)
• Primal Fear (1996)
• Proof (2005)
• Public Enemies (2009)
• Raisin in the Sun (1961)
• Random Encounter (1998)
• Rapid Fire (1992)
• The Man with the Golden Arm (1955)
• Red Heat (1988)
• The Relic (1997) - based on a book originally set in New York City
• Return to Me (2000)
• Ri¢hie Ri¢h (1994) - Scenes filmed in Chicago
• Risky Business (1983)
• Road to Perdition (2001)
• Robin and the 7 Hoods (1964)
• Roll Bounce (2005)
• Rookie of the Year (1993)
• Running Scared (1986)
• Save the Last Dance (2001)
• Shall We Dance? (2004)
• Sheba, Baby (1975) (partly in Chicago)
• She's Having a Baby (1988)
• Silver Streak (1976) (partly in Chicago)
• Sleepless In Seattle (1993) (partly in Chicago)
• Slim (1937) (partly in Chicago)
• Some Like It Hot (1959) (partly in Chicago)
• Somewhere in Time (1980) (partly in Chicago)
• Soul Food (1997)
• A Sound of Thunder (2005)
• The Sting (1973) (partly in Chicago)
• Stir of Echoes (1999)
• Stolen Summer (2001)
• Straight Talk (1992)
• Stranger than Fiction (2006)
• Strawberry Fields (1997)
• Streets of Fire (1984)
• Surviving Christmas (2003)
• That Royale Girl (1925)
• Thief (1981)
• Tommy Boy (1995) (partly in Chicago)
• Three To Tango (1999)
• The Unborn (2009)
• Transformers: Dark of the Moon (2011)
• Uncle Buck (1989)
• Ultraviolet (2006)
• The Untouchables (1987)
• U.S. Marshals (1998) (partly in Chicago)
• Vegas Vacation (1997-starts in Chicago)
• V.I. Warshawski (1991)
• Wanted (2008)
• The Watcher (2000)
• Wayne's World (1992) (partly in Chicago)
• Wayne's World 2 (1993) (partly in Chicago)
• The Weather Man (2005)
• A Wedding (1978)
• What Women Want (2000)
• When Harry Met Sally (1989) (partly in Chicago)
• While You Were Sleeping (1995)
• The Whole Nine Yards (2000)
• Wicker Park (2004)
• Wildcats (1986)
• Within Our Gates (1920)

Although not set in the city's limits, the John Hughes films Sixteen Candles, The Breakfast Club, Pretty in Pink, and Weird Science take place in the fictional town of Shermer, Illinois, which is loosely based on Northbrook, Illinois. In The Matrix, the subway sets were based on the CTA. One of the trains is clearly a Brown Line train, which in reality never goes underground.

TV shows

• "Against the Wall" (2011-present)
• According to Jim (2001–2009)
• Barbershop: The Series (2005)
• The Beast (2009)
• Biker Mice from Mars (1993–1995)
• The Bob Newhart Show (1972–1978)
• The Boondocks (TV series)
• Boss (2011–present)
• Buck Rogers in the 25th Century (1979–1981); in its first season (1979–1980), New Chicago functioned as Earth's capital city
• The Chicago Code (2011)
• Chicago Hope (1994–2000)
• Chicago Sons (1997)
• Chicago Story (1982)
• Coupling (2003); US version only
• Crime Story (1986–1988)
• Cupid (1998)
• The Dresden Files (2007)
• Due South (1994–1996, 1997–1999); some filming in Toronto, Canada
• Early Edition (1996–2000)
• E/R (1984–1985)
• ER (1994–2009)
• Exosquad (1993–1995); Chicago, renamed to Phaeton City, was one of the central locations of the show
• Family Matters (1989–1998)
• The Forgotten (2009–present)
• Generations (1989–1991)
• Good Times (1974–1979)
• The Good Wife (TV series) (2009–present)
• Happy Endings (TV series) (2011–present)
• The Hogan Family (1986–1991)
• The Jenny Jones Show (1991–2003)
• Kenan & Kel (1996–2000)
• Kolchak: The Night Stalker (1974–1975)
• The League (2009–present)
• Legally Mad (2009–present)
• Leverage (2008–present); pilot episode only
• Life Goes On (1989–1993)
• Life With Bonnie (2002–2004)
• The Loop (2006–2007)
• M Squad (1957–1960)
• Married... with Children (1987–1997)
• Mike and Molly (2010–present)
• Modern Men (2006)
• MTV Chicago (present)
• My Block Chicago (present)
• My Boys (2006–present)
• Pepper Dennis (2006)
• Perfect Strangers (1986–1993)
• The Playboy Club
• Prison Break (2005–2009); partly set in Chicago
• Punky Brewster (1984–1986)
• The Real World (2001–2002 season)
• Samantha Who? (2007–2009)
• Shake It Up (2010–present)
• Shameless (2011–present)
• Sisters (1991–1996)
• Soul Food: The Series (2000–2004)
• Special Unit 2
• Starting Over (2003–2004 season)
• The Steve Harvey Show (1996–2002)
• Still Standing (2002–2006)
• Traffic Light (2011–present)
• Trust Me (2009)
• Two of a Kind (1998–1999)
• The Untouchables (1959–1963)
• What About Joan? (2001)
• Webster (1983–1987)
• Whitney (2011–present)
• Wild Card (2003–2005)

Many considered Hill Street Blues, which never made explicit what city it was in, to be set in Chicago.

Chicago was the site of a nuclear detonation in the post-apocalyptic drama Jericho, as well as subsequent food riots in nearby refugee camps.

Video games

This is a list of video games in which a major part of the action takes place in Chicago, Illinois. This list does not count sports games or flight simulators, save for Pilotwings 64 and Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X.

List of games which feature Chicago

• 18 Wheels of Steel series (PC)
• BattleTanx (N64)
• Blues Brothers 2000 (N64)
• Chicago Enforcer (Xbox)
• Chicago 90 (Amiga)
• Crimson Skies: High Road to Revenge (Xbox)
• Cruisin' USA (Midway Games) (Arcade/N64)
• Deus Ex: Invisible War (PC/Xbox)
• Double S.T.E.A.L: The Second Clash (Xbox)
• Driver 2 (PS/GBA)
• Emergency Call Ambulance (Arcade)
• I Am Alive (PC/PS3/Xbox360)
• Lethal Enforcers (Konami)
• Midtown Madness (PC)
• Michael Jordan in Chaos in the Windy City (SNES)
• Mob Enforcer (PC)
• NARC (Williams Electronics) (PC/PS2/Xbox)
• Nocturne (PC)
• Perfect Dark (N64)
• Pilotwings 64 (N64)
• Project Gotham Racing 2 (Xbox)
• Rampage World Tour (N64/PS1)
• Rampage 2: Universal Tour (N64/PS1)
• Rampage: Total Destruction (GCN/PS2/Wii)
• Resistance 2 (PS3)
• Rock Band (PS2/PS3/Xbox360/Wii/PSP)
• Stranglehold (video game) (PlayStation 3, Xbox 360, PC)
• Tom Clancy's H.A.W.X. (PC/PS3/Xbox360/Wii)
• Tony Hawk's Pro Skater 4 (PC/PS/PS2/Xbox)
• US Racer (PC)
• You Don't Know Jack (PC) - The host mentions being in or from Chicago periodically.

Others (Comics, Manga, Cartoons)

• Blue Beetle (Ted Kord)
• Cage, volume 1 (April 1992-November 1993) - ongoing series by Marvel Comics featuring the superhero Luke Cage; 20 issues were published
• Gunsmith Cats
• Riding Bean

External links

• City of Chicago's Film Office
• Chicago in Science Fiction bibliography